Disraeli’s quotation, “Circumstances are beyond the control of man; but his conduct is his own power”, means that people can express free will, can make their own decisions, and can express their own personality, but they do not have control of their fates. In Oedipus the King and Macbeth, the eponymous characters hear their own prophecy. They have free will, but they cannot alter the prophecy.
One of the themes in Oedipus the King is that characters fight against their fates. However, their efforts do not stop the prophecy from being fulfilled. For example, the prophecy states that Laius and Jocasta’s son will kill his father and marry his mother. Therefore, Laius and Jocasta choose to defy fate. They injure Oedipus’ knee and abandoned him so that he would not come back home, but the prophecy still comes true. This shows that although the characters have power to make their own decisions, they do not have enough power to stop the prophecy from being fulfilled. Oedipus hears from a drunken man that he is not his father’s son and decides to hear the truth about his birth from the oracle of Delphi: “And so, / unknown to mother and father I set out for Delphi” (868-9). It is Oedipus’ own choice to confirm the validity of the rumor; however, he only learns about his tragic fate. After hearing the prophecy, he chooses to run away from Corinth to defy the prophecy. This shows that free will is limited such that characters do not have enough power to change their fate. Characters in Oedipus the King persistently try to alter the prophecy, but their efforts do not change the prophecy.
Oedipus is responsible for his own flaws; his fate is only a consequence of his behaviors. Another theme in Oedipus the King is that excessive ...
... middle of paper ...
...by saying that if the murderers were real men, they would have the courage to kill Banquo. Thus, the murderers ruthlessly kill Banquo. Young Sidward is a bold, yet daring son of the English Commander. He decides to ask Macbeth for name. Therefore, he believes that if he kills the tyrant, he will be a man. Although he does not succeed in killing Macbeth, he is courageous to face the king, yet ruthless because he wants to slay the king. His ruthlessness and courage deemed him to be a man: “he only lived but till he was a man” (5.8.45). Young Sidward chooses to fight against Macbeth, but the prophecy did not change. Young Sidward is unsuccessful because he was born from a woman’s womb.
Characters in Oedipus the King and Macbeth have the power to choose their own actions, but they do not have control over their fate. The choices they make are from their own free will.
Determining whether man can or cannot control destiny can be a difficult task, as proof is necessary in order to demonstrate that the progression of events follows a preconceived course rather than one that is random and subject to the influence of individual choices. In Oedipus Rex, the proof on which predetermination lies is the existence of a prophecy. In order to understand this, one must consider the events that took place before the time of the play. In the scene in which Oedipus speaks with the messenger from Corinth, Oedipus refers to the reason why he fled Corinth. The king states, “I dread the oracle from the go, stranger…No, you may hear it. Apollo told me I would become my mother’s lover, ...
It is obvious that Macbeth is constantly enacting his free will on his life. His fate does not entirely dictate what transpires in his life. Macbeth would never have become King, killed Banquo, descended to madness, and be killed, without choosing to commit the actions ...
In the play The Tragedy of Macbeth by William Shakespeare, the character Macbeth acts on free will as opposed to fate. The definition of free will is having the ability to make a choice; including the possession of options, logical reasoning for choosing each option, as well as understanding the consequences of each decision. Macbeth obeys all the criteria, using “fate” as an excuse to act like a murder-crazy lunatic, ultimately resulting in his demise.
Even though "fate" seems to determine Oedipus' life, he does, in fact, have a free will.
Oedipus was a unique individual for his time. He wasn?t seen as being a perfectionist. The impression of the play was to give off a message of imperfection. Cases such as Oedipus?s could be related t...
Fate and free will, the beliefs that humans are either mere playthings to the universe or are in full control of their destinies. The tragic play Macbeth, by William Shakespeare, has the ideas of fate and free will present throughout. The play opens on eleventh century Scotland, where the main character, Macbeth, meets with three witches who tell him that he is fated to become king. Macbeth decides to leave out chance, take matters into his own hands, and kill King Duncan. He soon becomes paranoid and sends orders to kill those he believes are a threat to his power. Although Macbeth was fated to become king, his downfall was caused by his own free will on the account of his choices to put faith in the witches, kill King Duncan, and kill the family of Macduff.
In Sophocles ' Oedipus the King, the themes of fate and free will are very strong throughout the play. Only one, however, brought about Oedipus ' downfall and death. Both points could be argued to great effect. In ancient Greece, fate was considered to be a rudimentary part of daily life. Every aspect of life depended and was based upon fate (Nagle 100). It is common belief to assume that mankind does indeed have free will and each individual can decide the outcome of his or her life. Fate and free will both decide the fate of Oedipus the King.
Banquo is saying that it is strange how “the instruments of darkness,” (1.3.136) the witches, can lead Macbeth to harm by tricking him. They do this by telling Macbeth a small trifle – that he will become Thane of Cawdor. While this comes true, it is actually a result of Macbeth’s acts of loyalty to the king. Once this first prophecy of the witches proves true, Macbeth bel...
Lowe argues that Macbeth constantly presses the witches to reveal more, and acts under his own accord to commit the act of murder. The witches merely state that Macbeth will become king; they do not order him to kill Duncan. Lowe concludes that Macbeth is a culpable human, acting on his own ambition with help from the Witches. Macbeth, from a causation standpoint, reveals that the initial meeting with the Witches caused the downfall of Macbeth. Lowe states “Metaphorically speaking, the witches give Macbeth a flame, but Macbeth lit himself on fire and kept feeding that fire until he was completely destroyed. Thus, it can hardly be argued that Macbeth is a pawn of fate, a victim of circumstance. Rather, Macbeth creates his own tragic circumstance, freely murdering his way to his demise” (Lowe, 2005). Lady Macbeth also forces her own will upon Macbeth, calling him a coward to prick at his sides. The threat of being considered a coward in the eyes of his lover is more important than the problems anf implications of committing a murder. Macbeth values his self worth and personal gain than the life of his friends and allies. The murder of Banquo is what ultimately leads to his demise, says Lowe. Macbeth’s guilt takes the form of a ghost, coercing Macbeth into admitting his involvement in the murder of Banqou. This leads to the separation of Macbeth’s troops, whom later come to kill him in the final act. The Witches’ “prophecy” of kingship and grandeur, Macbeth’s senseless killings, and ultimately his guilt and remorse, are enough to make Macbeth believe he is acting out his
Fate is the belief that a person's life is being controlled by destiny while free will is the belief that a person's life is being controlled by themselves where they choose how to live their life and without an external force. Although this topic has divided people for many centuries, many famous poets and authors have used this to their advantage. One example of fate versus free will is Oedipus Rex by Sophocles. Oedipus Rex should be considered to be categorized as a free will drama because of several events that happen that shows Oedipus free will, such as the example of the messenger telling Jocasta the good news, 2“MESSENGER: The people of Isthmus will choose Oedipus to be their king. That is the rumor there.” (1061-1062) The Messenger
Whether or not the concept of fate is legitimate is regularly debated by many people. Some believe that the events of one’s life are predetermined by a supernatural power, out of human control. Others believe that free will allows us to create our own fate, and that one’s decisions determine how the events of one’s life play out. In William Shakespeare’s Macbeth, both fate and free will are predominant themes in the play. The ever-present supernatural aspect of the play can create an interesting debate over whether or not Macbeth’s downfall could have played out differently, or even been avoided completely. The witches’ prophecies had an impact on Macbeth’s actions, however, it is ultimately free-will that causes his downfall.
Words like destiny, fate, and predestination have a much meaning to people today, as countless people believe in it. On the other hand, the belief that a person controls his life has been established as an opposing belief. The book Oedipus the King, a Greek tragedy, written by Sophocles, examines this debate between fate and choice. Although some people argue that the tragedies that took place in Oedipus' life were destined to happen, the grim circumstances that surrounded Oedipus' life were the result of his own free will and the decisions he made about many of these circumstances.
From the very beginning, Oedipus was destined to fulfill Apollo's prophecy of killing his father. Even though King Lauis tries to kill Oedipus to stop the fulfillment of this shameful prophecy, fate drives the Corinthian messenger to save Oedipus. What the gods fortell will come true and no human can stop it from happening, not even the kings. Oedipus is once again controlled by this power when he leaves the place of his child hood after he hears that he is to kill his father and marry his mother. "I shall shrink from nothing...to find the the murderer of Laius...You are the murderer..." Oedipus tried to stop the prophecy from coming true by leaving Corinth and only fate can make Oedipus turn to the road where he kills his true father. Leaving Corinth makes Oedipus lose his childhood by making him worry of such issues young people should not have to worry about and becoming a king of a strange land. Last of all, Oedipus carries the last part of the prophecy out, marrying his mother. " I would... never have been known as my mother's husband. Oedipus has no control over the outcome of his life. Fate causes Oedipus to have known the answer to the Sphinx's riddle and win his marriage to his mother, Jocasta. Had fate not intervened, the chances of marrying Jocasta would have been small since there is an enourmous number of people and places to go. Oedipus loses his sense of dignity after he discovers he is not only a murderer, but also that he had committed incest.
What does it mean to have free will? From my perspective it is the ability to make your own decisions when confronted with problems in order to have an outcome you desire. According to dictionary.com it is “the doctrine that the conduct of human being expresses personal choice and is not simply determined by physical or divine forces.” Even with humans being capable of choosing their own destiny, is it possible to over come fate no matter how hard you try? There is a theory of life that is summarized as everything happens for a reason because that is your destiny. My confusion is, can free will come into play and change your destiny? Can you actually have the free will to change the outcome of what fate has in store for you. Free will and fate are continuously demonstrated in Oedipus the King the play, how ever only one brought Oedipus towards downfall and ultimately to his death. An analysis of Oedipus reveals that no matter how we try to avoid our fate, it will happen.
Throughout the play, Oedipus tries to change his fate. When he confirms through two messengers and an oracle that he is destined to marry his mother and kill his father, he completely panics. He knows that is something he definitely wants to avoid, so he decided he would attempt to change his fate. But at that time, he did not realize that your fate is your fate and it will not change.